Love is a Beautiful Thing
by Snow94
Summary: ADVANCESHIPPING. After Ash leaves for the Sinnoh Region and May leaves for the Johto Region, Delia invites everyone to her wedding in Pallet Town. When the two friends reunite, will they have the guts to tell each other how they really feel? COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter One**_

Brock, Ash and Dawn had taken a brief break from their Sinnoh journey to attend Delia's wedding in Pallet Town. A year and a half ago, she had met the man of her dreams, one of those rock-hard-on-the-outside, yet soft-and-mushy-on-the-inside kind of people, named Ryan. Ash and Ryan had never really seen eye-to-eye, but Ash was willing to accept him for his mother's sake.

Probably the worst part about Delia and Ryan getting married was that Ash would have to put up with Caitlyn, Ryan's 10-year-old daughter. There was quite a big age difference between Ash, who was 16, and his "wicked step-sister", as he put it.

Ash had insisted that Brock came to the wedding, considering that they had been best friends ever since Ash had started his journey. At first, Brock was a little reluctant to go, but at the mention of the possibility of "hot girls", his 19-year-old, hormone-crazed mind had a change of heart.

Dawn, on the other hand, immediately accepted the invitation to the wedding, partially just as an excuse to go shopping all day for extravagant dresses, jewelry, and other things she could probably live without. She had known Ash and Brock for a little less than a year, after traveling through the Sinnoh region together. Dawn, being 14, was usually looked down upon as the "little sister" of the group, so she and Ash periodically had small arguments, but were friends nonetheless.

Misty was visiting from Cerulean City, since she had been friends with Ash for a few years, and was pretty close to Delia. Now 17, Misty had learned a lot while traveling through Kanto with Ash, and wanted to be there with him (and Delia) during such an important event.

And then there were May and Max. The Maple family had also been invited to the wedding, since Caroline, May and Max's mother, and Delia had become such good friends while their children traveled together, and Norman, the father, was pretty much just part of the package (though he and Delia were somewhat close). May was 15 and Max was 12, so they had their typical sibling quarrels. Even though they argued on a regular basis while they were traveling, Ash and Brock knew that somewhere, deep in their hearts, May and Max really did care about each other. May and Max hadn't seen Ash or Brock for nearly a year, the last time being during their travels in Hoenn, so they wanted to visit them in Pallet to catch up and discuss their journeys. When Ash invited them to his mother's wedding, May was absolutely thrilled, but Max refused to go—or, at least until May literally dragged him along with her and their parents.

Ash, Brock, Misty, and Dawn were sitting in the living room of the Ketchum household, playing Uno at the coffee table in the center of the room. Dawn had won the past five games, and the other three players weren't finding much enjoyment out of the game.

"HA! Uno out!" Dawn exclaimed joyfully, tossing her last card onto the table. "That's, what…six for six now?"

"Yeah. Congratulations," Brock said sarcastically as he, Misty and Ash threw their cards sloppily onto the table in defeat.

"Oh, come on, don't be bummed out just because I won all six games," Dawn said, smiling.

"Well, I've had enough of this stupid game," Misty said.

"Yeah, I'm done, too," Ash agreed. "I'm sick of losing."

"_Cough_, sore loser, _cough_," Dawn teased.

Ash turned around when he heard footsteps coming from the kitchen. His mother had the telephone receiver in her right hand, and motioned for him to follow her back into the kitchen. Ash got up, thankful for an excuse to get away from Dawn and her gloating, and left the room.

"Ash, dear, May's on the phone for you," Delia whispered, handing her son the phone as she walked away to give him some privacy.

Ash took the receiver, placed it to his ear and said in a happy tone, "Hi, May!"

"Hi, Ash!" he heard the familiar voice say from the other end of the phone. "It's good to talk to you again."

"Yeah, it's been a while, hasn't it?" he replied.

"Yeah, it has. Well, the reason I called is that our ship will be docking in a few minutes, and I was just making sure someone over there is still picking us up." May said.

"Of course," Ash answered. "I'll leave for the harbor right now."

"Okay," May said. "Well, I guess I'll see ya soon then."

"Yep, see ya soon. Bye, May."

"Bye, Ash."

After he hung up the phone, Ash grabbed his car keys off the kitchen counter, and walked through the living room to the front door. "Hey, Mom, I'm going to pick up May and Max from the harbor now. I'll be back soon," he said to Delia, who had started a conversation with the two girls about her wedding the coming Sunday.

"Alright, dear. Be careful," she replied, briefly glancing in his direction before returning to her conversation.

Ash hurried out the door and got in his car, started the engine, and drove off toward the harbor. He was worried that his mom would lecture him again about "safety behind the wheel" for the umpteenth time, considering he had only had his license for a few months, but he apparently had gotten lucky that time.

Ash arrived at the Pallet Town Harbor in about 20 minutes, and hurried off to the docks, figuring that May and Max had probably already gotten off the ship. He searched the crowd, trying to find his friends, but with so many people moving in every direction, it was difficult to focus on any one person in particular.

After searching for close to ten minutes, Ash still hadn't seen any sign of any of the Maples. He turned around when he felt a light tapping on his shoulder, and saw Max standing in front of him.

"Hey, Max! It's great to see you!" Ash said as he and the younger boy briefly hugged.

"Hi, Ash!" Max replied with a smile. "I have so many stories to tell you about my journey in Hoenn! I've caught 20 Pokémon so far!"

"Wow, Max, sounds like you're doing great so far," Ash complimented. "Wait, where's May?"

Seconds later, a figure pushed past a group of people in front of Ash and Max, stumbling slightly in the process. "MAX! Where the heck did you--," May started, before losing her footing and falling forward. Ash ran toward her and caught her before she hit the ground, his arms supported her as she regained her balance and stood up straight again. "Oh, my God, I'm so sorry, I wasn't--," May began to say, but stopped mid-sentence as she looked up at the person who caught her.

"Ya know, for a Pokémon Coordinator, you sure aren't' very coordinated," Ash teased as he looked down at her.

May smiled brightly as she looked into his eyes. "Oh, Ash, it's really you!" she exclaimed as she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Ash wrapped his arms around her torso, also smiling as he hugged his friend he hadn't seen in nearly a year.

"Uh, excuse me, but could you two please stop being all lovey-dovey or whatever?" Max said with an odd expression on his face.

"Max, would you stop being so dramatic?" May snapped at her brother as she and Ash pulled apart after a few seconds. "I mean, we're, like, best friends, and we haven't seen each other in a long time."

"Whatever," Max said.

"So, should we head back over to my house?" Ash asked the siblings.

"Okay," May answered. Max simply shrugged his shoulders.

The trio made their way back through the crowd in an attempt to get to the parking lot. They were silent on the walk over, partly because the docks were too noisy to be able to be heard even if they tried to talk. When they reached Ash's car, he unlocked the doors and helped May and Max load their bags into the trunk. Ash then got in the driver's seat, May sat next to him in the passenger's seat, and Max sat behind May in the back seat.

"Hey, May, I thought that your parents were coming to the wedding," Ash said once they were on their way back to his house.

"They're coming, but my dad had some work to finish up in the Petalburg gym, and my mom had to spend a little extra time in the greenhouse," May answered. "They're sailing over on Sunday morning, but Max and I wanted to come earlier to spend some time catching up with you and Brock."

"Yeah, Max told me that his journey in Hoenn was going really well," Ash said. "So, May, how're your contests going in Johto?"

"Oh, you know, the usual," May answered in a casual tone. "And to be honest, I was really glad you invited me to your mom's wedding. It gave me a reasonable excuse to get away from Drew and Harley for a while."

"What'd they do now?" Ash asked with a chuckle, glancing to his right for a moment to look in her direction.

"Drew won't stop nagging me about 'giving it my all' and trying to convince that my strategy will never work. Although, I already have three ribbons, and he only has one. And Harley's just being…Harley," she said.

Ash laughed as they continued the drive to his house. He and May told a few stories about what they had been doing while they had been apart, and Max would occasionally cut in to brag about his journey. They pulled into the driveway a while later, and the three got out of the car, getting the bags out of the car. Ash opened the front door as May and Max walked in the house, before entering himself.

"Mom, we're back!" Ash called to his mother.

Delia immediately appeared from the kitchen, embracing May in a tight hug. "Oh, it's so nice to see you, dear!" she said. May gave Ash a pleading look from over Delia's shoulder, his mother practically squeezing the air out of her.

"Um… Mom, you could probably let her go now," Ash told his mother.

Delia realized how hard she was hugging May, and quickly let go. "Oops! Sorry, May, but I haven't seen you in close to a year and a half! Oh, Max, how are you, sweetie?" She gave him a quick hug, knowing he wouldn't be quite as willing as his sister.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter Two**_

Ash, Brock, May, Misty, and Dawn were hanging out in May and Max's hotel room a few blocks away from Ash's house. Dawn and Misty were also sharing a room a few doors down the hall on the third floor, and Brock was staying with Ash and Delia. The wedding was being held at the Ketchum household, but there was no way all eleven of them were going to be able to spend the entire weekend crammed into a house built for three people. Max, not really giving a crap about what the five teenagers were talking about, was sitting on his bed, messing around with his Pokénav.

"So Ash, are you excited about your mom's wedding on Sunday?" Misty asked from the foot of the bed. May was laying next to her on her stomach reading a magazine, only partially paying attention to the conversation. Ash and Brock were at the opposite end of the bed, their backs against the headboard. Dawn was occupied sitting in front of the mirror near the bed, fixing her hair, which she never seemed to be satisfied with.

"Uh… not really," Ash replied.

"What do you mean?" Misty asked. "Your mom's getting remarried after all these years—she's finally found someone she wants to spend the rest of her life with. You should be happy for her, Ash!"

"Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for her. But… I don't think Ryan really cares for me. I guess all he cares about is making sure his precious little Caitlyn is always happy. He pretty much ignores me most of the time he's around," Ash said.

"Well, I'm sure you'll warm up to him eventually, Ash, don't worry," Brock reassured.

"It's not just Ryan. Caitlyn is such a little brat!" Ash said in an annoyed tone.

"Oh, but Ash, she is so cute!" Dawn exclaimed. "I don't see why you can't at least try to get along with her."

Ash folded his arms across his chest and glared out the window. "The kid's just… weird."

"Alright…" Misty sighed, dropping the conversation. "Well, it's about 5:00 now, so what do you guts say about going to the mall to get our clothes for Sunday?"

"D-did you say… _mall_?" May exclaimed, immediately snapping to full attention at the word. She glanced at Dawn, who had a similar expression on her face. May sprang off the bed, followed by Misty and Dawn, and the three girls grabbed their purses and bolted for the door.

Ash laughed quietly to himself. "Girls…" he muttered under his breath. He and Brock slowly got up and walked toward the door, not quite as enthusiastic as their female companions had been.

Brock and Ash found the girls waiting impatiently near the elevator. After taking a quick head count, May asked, "Is Max still in the room?"

"Oh yeah, I thought he was coming out of room with us," Ash said, turning around. "I'll go back and ge—"

"Max! Get out here! NOW!" May yelled. The others winced, obviously not expecting that kind of outburst from May.

Max trudged out of the room a few seconds later and sighed. "Do I really have to go?"

"Yes, Max, the wedding is in two days, and you're going to need a tux," May replied.

"A _tux_?" Max scowled in disgust.

"Well, Max, if it makes you feel any better, Ash and I'll be wearing 'em, too," Brock said, trying to be reassuring.

"Wow, that ought to be a sight to see," Dawn smirked, earning a dirty glare from Ash. Brock seemed to have missed the joke.

"Ugh…"Max said as the elevator doors opened. When they were all inside, May pressed the "L" button, and the doors reopened seconds later on the main floor. Misty, May, and Dawn led the way out the front doors of the hotel, discussing what kind of dresses they wanted for the wedding. Ash and Brock walked a few feet behind them, with Max bringing up the rear.

After about twenty minutes of walking, the group arrived at the mall. The three girls turned around to face Ash, Brock, and Max at the mall's main entrance, and May said, "Alright, there's no point in all six of us going together. Misty, Dawn, and I will look for our dresses, and you three do whatever you gotta do. I guess we could meet up here around 6:30, and maybe get some dinner before heading back. Agreed?"

"Agreed!" Ash, Brock, Dawn, and Misty responded.

"Whatever," moaned Max.

As they started walking away, May walked over to Ash and grabbed him gently by the arm. "Hey Ash, do you think you could help Max out a little? I'm sure he'd at least somewhat appreciate it, since you're like an older brother to him, and it might make him feel a little more comfortable about this whole situation. Plus, I don't trust his judgment," she whispered in his ear.

Ash laughed, but only loud enough that the two of them could hear it. "Well, I guess I don't blame ya. Sure, May, I'll help him."

"Thanks, Ash," May whispered back to him. "Okay, we'll see you guts later then!" she said to the three boys, briefly smiling down at Max and ruffling his hair. He slapped her hand back, and instead of trying to start something in the middle of the mall, May just shot him a dirty look and caught up with Misty and Dawn.

"Bye, guys!" Dawn and Misty said, following May up the escalator.

Ash blushed slightly as he watched May walk away, but as to why he was getting this awkward feeling in his stomach, he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He finally snapped back to reality when Brock waved his hand in front of his face.

"Uh, Ash, you in there?" he asked.

"Wha--? Oh, yeah! Of course," Ash stuttered. Brock smiled slightly to himself upon seeing Ash's reaction.

"So Ash," Max said, "where's Pikachu? I haven't seen him since we got to your house."

Ash smiled. "Pikachu's at Professor Oak's lab. I figured it would be nice if he and all of my other Pokémon got reacquainted."

"Oh, that makes sense," Max said.

Brock, Ash, and Max had eventually found their way to the tailor shop. The three exchanged nervous glances before hesitantly entering the store.

Dawn, Misty, and May, however, had the exact opposite attitude about the situation. They walked eagerly into the bridal shop, and immediately started searching through the racks. They all took several dresses at once into the fitting rooms. After finally picking out her favorite dress, Misty was the first to emerge from the fitting room. She wore a strapless, ankle-length, baby blue dress. She walked over to the full-length mirror, admiring her reflection. Misty jumped slightly in surprise as she saw May's reflection appear suddenly beside her own.

"Wow, Misty, that dress is so cute!" May exclaimed. "That color really brings out your eyes."

"Thanks, May!" Misty replied, looking at May's dress for the first time. "Oh, my God, your dress looks amazing!"

"You really think so?" May asked as she twirled in front of the mirror, smiling. She had chosen a white, knee-length, spaghetti-strap dress. "I really like it, too. I think I'll buy it."

Misty looked around the store for a moment. "Huh, Dawn's not out yet. I wonder what's taking her so long."

May approached the door to the room Dawn was in and knocked. "Hey, Dawn, you almost done in there?"

And irritated groan was heard from the other side of the door before Dawn's reply. "All of these dresses look horrible on me, May!"

"Oh, come on, it can't be that bad. Just come out for a minute and let us give you our opinions," May called.

"Ugh…fine," Dawn sighed. She opened the door, revealing her light pink, knee-length dress that had stripes of glitter winding down the dress.

"Dawn, that looks awesome on you!" Misty complimented.

"You don't think the glitter is too much?" Dawn asked, looking down at herself.

"Trust us, Dawn. You look great," May said with a smile.

Dawn walked over to the full-length mirror, grinning slightly at her reflection. "Well, I guess it doesn't look _that_ bad," she said. "I guess this is the one."

"Alright, let's go then," Misty said as they walked back into the dressing rooms. Once they had changed into their normal clothes, they took the dresses up to the cashier. After paying for them, the girls thanked the woman behind the counter and walked out of the store.

May took out her cell phone and read the time. "Ya know, guys," she said, "it's only 6:10. We're not supposed to meet up with Max, Ash, and Brock for another 20 minutes. I'm sure we could find some accessories to match our dresses…"

"I was thinking the same thing!" Misty and Dawn exclaimed excitedly. The three girls laughed as they ran towards the nearest jewelry store.

**Hey everyone! I just wanted to thank you all for reviewing my very first fanfic and all that. Please keep it up and let me know if there's anything you think I need to change or think I should add. If you haven't read my profile, I'm trying to update every Friday for consistency, so chapter three should be up by next Friday (2/20), so keep a look out for that. Also, feel free to email me (see profile for address), and I'll try to read them ASAP. Thanks again! ~ Snow 94 =)**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter Three**_

Brock, Max, and Ash sat on a bench near the main entrance, Max drumming his fingers impatiently on the arm rest to his left.

"Well, it's 6:45 now," Brock announced, looking at his watch. "May, Misty, and Dawn were supposed to meet us back here fifteen minutes ago. Where are they?"

"Yeah, it's so unlike May to actually forget about something important after shopping in the mall for hours on end," Max snickered.

"I guess I'll call her cell phone," Ash said, smiling slightly at Max's comment as he took the phone from his pocket.

The girls were walking out of Claire's, their third jewelry store, when May heard her cell phone ring from her purse. She dug through several layers of stuff (whatever happened to be in her purse), before finally retrieving her phone from the clutter. She looked at the caller I.D. before flipping the phone open and saying, "Hey, Ash."

"May, where are you guys? We've been waiting nearly twenty minutes for you to show up!" Ash nearly yelled into the receiver.

"Oh, my God, Ash, I'm so sorry!" May exclaimed, yanking the other two girls away from a shop window and running toward the escalator. "We're on our way downstairs right now."

"Alright, but if you're not here in the next five minutes, Max is gonna lose it. I think this whole experience has traumatized him," Ash said, a little more calmly.

"Okay, I'll see you guys in a few minutes," May laughed. "Bye!"

"See ya," Ash said before closing his phone.

Minutes later, May, Misty, and Dawn had made it down the escalator, talking and laughing as they walked over to their friends.

"FINALLY!" Max yelled as he saw his sister approaching them.

Brock and Ash turned around and, sure enough, Misty, Dawn, and May were walking towards them.

"O.M.G., you wouldn't believe all the cute things we found for Sunday!" Dawn said enthusiastically. She began digging through one her six bags.

May opened her mouth to say something in response to Dawn's comment, but Ash held his hand out in front of her face to stop her. "Well, as interesting as that sounds," he interrupted, "I'd rather discuss dinner. I'm starving."

"We could go to the food court?" May suggested.

"Ugh, we have to _eat_ here, too?" Max said in an irritated tone.

"I saw a restaurant near the lobby of the hotel. Do you guys wanna go there?" Brock asked.

"Sure," the group replied in unison.

The three boys, who had nothing but food on their minds, practically ran back to the hotel. May, Misty, and Dawn, who each had several shopping bags in each hand, quickly fell behind—which the other three paid no attention to.

"Hey! Would you guys mind waiting for us?" Dawn screamed.

"Well, it's not our fault you have a million shopping bags!" Ash screamed back at her.

"Maybe _someone_ should be a proper gentleman and offer to help a woman in need!"

"And maybe _some_ people don't consider it their problem!"

Ash and Dawn continued to bicker back and forth until they arrived back at the hotel. May rolled her eyes and laughed quietly to herself, seeing their all-too-familiar sibling-like behavior.

The group walked through the doors of the hotel, and Ash immediately ran toward the entrance of the restaurant. He looked at the sign hanging in the window, and leaned his forehead against the glass in distress.

"They're _closed_?" Ash questioned.

"Chill, Ash. We can always just go to a fast food restaurant near the hotel," Misty said.

"No way," Dawn protested. "I can't walk anymore. Walking around the mall this afternoon has really taken its toll on my feet. They're killing me."

"Well, that's not our problem, now is it?" Ash said in a low voice, his hands still gripping the handles of the restaurant doors, his hunger taking slight advantage over his temper.

Dawn had a look of rage on her face, and was about to respond to Ash's comment, but Brock cut in. "Guys, Misty's right. We can go back up to our rooms, rest a while, and then go get dinner."

"Fine," Ash replied.

"Whatever," Max sighed.

While Misty and Dawn went into their room to put their bags away, Ash and Brock followed May and Max into their room. May dropped her bags near the closet door before collapsing on one of the queen-sized beds. Max and Brock sat on the other bed a few feet away from the other, and Ash sat at the foot of May's bed.

The four of them sat there in silence for a few moments before Dawn and Misty entered the room. Ash quickly sprang to his feet.

"Okay, who's ready to go?" he asked as he moved toward the door.

"Hold it, Ash," Dawn said. "We already told you that we wanted to stay at the hotel for a while and rest a bit. I'm exhausted. We can all go out to eat a little later."

Ash rolled his eyes at her. "You're killing me here, Dawn."

"If you're really that hungry, Ash, I'll walk down to one of the restaurants with you and bring back dinner for everyone," May said, sitting up.

"I guess that'll work," Ash replied.

Ash and May took the orders of Brock, Misty, Dawn, and Max, and headed off towards the nearby McDonalds, which happened to be only two blocks away.

"So Ash, what exactly are the plans for the wedding?" May asked as they walked down the street.

"Well, I guess the wedding's going to be in the backyard, and the reception will be at Professor Oak's lab. His house is a lot bigger than ours, so it'll be more convenient," Ash answered.

"That'll be nice," May smiled.

Ash looked at her with a curious look. "Ya know I've never understood why girls always get so hyped-up over weddings and other romantic stuff. Would you mind explaining?"

May rolled her eyes and giggled at him. "Ash, two people falling head-over-heels for each other and becoming united for life is a truly heart-warming event. The couple share a special and unique bond, and marriage ties that bond permanently, so they can be happy together for the rest of their lives. Love is a beautiful thing. Well, that's what girls think, anyway. Boys like you wouldn't understand the complexity of eternal love."

Ash stared blankly at her for a few seconds. "Well, if you say so. Thanks for clearing that up for me— I guess."

As the two friends continued to walk, May's words eventually soaked into Ash. He thought about what she said, and recounted his experiences with her. He thought about all the times he comforted her went she was upset, and gave her a shoulder to lean on; about how she looked up to him when she needed advice on training, and he would assist her; about when her words gave him the courage to stay strong when things looked bleak. They were always there for each other. _'_He wasn't quite sure what it was, but he was starting to think of May in a different way. '_Could I seriously be falling in love with my best friend?'_ he thought. Ash quickly shook the though from his mind as May said something that he didn't hear, but it obviously wasn't too important because she didn't repeat herself or ask for an answer when he remained silent.

After a few minutes, Ash and May reached the doors of McDonalds. Ash got to the door first and opened it, allowing May to enter the restaurant. She smiled at him as she walked past him, before he followed behind her and letting the door close.

_'Huh. So he actually can be somewhat of a gentleman,' _May thought as she and Ash got in line to order.

The restaurant wasn't very busy, so Ash and May ordered, paid, and picked up the food about five minutes after they had arrived.

Ash continued complaining that his stomach was going to recede if he didn't eat soon, so he decided to eat his double cheeseburger on the way back. Since he wasn't able to talk, May was able to have some time to think.

_'Wow, Ash really has changed a lot since the last time we saw each other,'_ May thought. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. '_He's gotten taller, too,_' she observed as she walked slightly behind him. Indeed, Ash was now a good three or four inches taller than May. '_Hey, has he been working out?_' she thought as she admired his muscular arms and chest. She quickly shook her head. '_Ugh, why am I thinking about Ash like that?_' She looked up and glanced at him as another thought entered her head. _'Could I be starting to…fall in love with Ash?_'


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter Four**_

Ash and May arrived back at the hotel around 8:30. They got in the elevator and press the button for the third floor. They were both silent, lost in their own thoughts. Minutes later, the elevator doors opened and they exited. May stopped in front of the door and shifted the bags she held in her hands to try to dig in her pocket for the room key.

"Need some help?" Ash asked, reaching out with his right hand to take the bags from May.

"Oh… thanks, Ash," May said as she handed her bags to him. Now with her hands free, she reached her hand into her pocket and unlocked the door.

"We're back!" Ash called, shutting the door with his foot and placing the bags on the table to his left as he walked inside. He opened the bags and handed everyone their dinner.

The boys sat on Max's bed and the girls sat on May's bed across from them, facing each other while they sat on the edge of the beds. They were talking amongst themselves for a while before Ash got up and stretched.

"Well, Brock and I should probably get back to my house before it gets too dark," he said.

"Yeah, good idea," Brock agreed as he, too, stood up and walked toward the door.

"So, are we all gonna do something tomorrow?" Misty asked.

"I kinda wanted to see that new movie that came out last week," Dawn answered.

"Okay. Should we all meet here around noon?"

Ash, Dawn, and Brock all nodded in agreement.

"But that movie looks so stupid," Max complained.

"Just deal with it, Max," May sighed dully.

"Alright. Bye, guys!" Ash and Brock waved. The others waved back as they left.

After the door closed, Misty also stood up and walked over to the door. "Well, I'm gonna hit the hay. That trip to the mall really took a lot out of me. See ya in the morning, May."

May gave a weak smile in response and got up to get her pajamas out of her suitcase, and then walked toward the bathroom door. Dawn quickly stood up and grabbed her arm, causing her to spin around in surprise.

"May, are you alright?" Dawn whispered so that Max wouldn't hear.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine," May lied.

"You can't possibly expect me to believe that," Dawn said in an unconvinced tone. "May, we're best friends. Except for you and Ash, of course. Please talk to me about it."

"Dawn, I'm really tired right now. Can we talk in the morning?" May asked.

"Okay. But don't expect to get out of this. I can't stand to see you like this. None of us can. See ya later," Dawn said as she opened the door.

"Yeah. Good night," May said. Dawn smiled at her as she closed the door behind her.

May entered the bathroom and shut the door, sighing as she buried her face in her hands. She looked up at her reflection in the mirror and sighed again. "Why am I feeling so weird about Ash?" She asked herself. She shook her head as she got dressed into her pajamas. She reentered the room a few minutes later, and threw herself on the bed before placing her hands on her head and sighing yet again.

"What's your problem?" Max asked from his bed.

"Oh, nothing Max. I'm fine," she responded, getting under the covers and turning off the light on her side of the nightstand.

"Okay. Uh… good night, then," Max said. '_Wow, she didn't snap at me like she usually does. Something really is upsetting her,_' he thought. He dismissed the thought and also turned off the lamp near his bed. '_Whatever. It's not my problem.'_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter Five**_

May rolled over on her back, away from the window, shielding her eyes from the blinding light that had awoken her. She stretched her arms up over her head and yawned before swinging her legs over the side of her bed. She rubbed her eyes and read the clock on the end table near the bed. It was 8:27am. May went into the bathroom, changed, brushed her hair and teeth, etc. She sat on the edge of her bed about ten minutes later when she had finished in the bathroom. She glanced over at Max's bed, seeing him sprawled out on his back, his head halfway hanging off the edge of the bed, snoring softly in his sleep. May smiled slightly at her brother's sleeping position, before remembering the events of the previous night.

_'Do I really like Ash in that way?' _May thought as she started to pace slowly around the room. '_Should I tell him? What if it ruins our friendship if I do tell him?'_

As she continued to question her feelings, May heard a knock on the door. She opened it revealing Dawn, a grin on her face.

"Hey, May," Dawn greeted. "Did you sleep well?"

"I suppose," May answered. "I spent a lot of time thinking."

"Thinking about what you were so upset about last night?"

May shrugged her shoulders. "I don't think I was _upset_ exactly, just kinda unsure of how I felt. But yeah, I was thinking about that."

"Do you still wanna talk about it?" Dawn asked in a gentle voice.

May pondered the question for a moment. If she told Dawn how she felt about Ash, would she spill it to him? How would Dawn feel about it? Finally she decided that she needed some advice of how to handle the situation, so she nodded her head.

"Do you want to go to breakfast to talk?" Dawn asked.

"Well, I guess I couldn't pass up a meal," May giggled.

"I knew you'd say that. I already asked Misty to keep an eye on Max for a while," Dawn said as she and May walked toward the elevator.

As the elevator doors opened on the main floor, the two girls made their way into the restaurant they had planned on eating at the night before. They seated themselves at a booth near the window, and they told the waitress that approached them their drink orders.

"Okay, May, what's up?" Dawn inquired, setting down her menu and folding her arms across the table in front of her as she looked up at May.

May sighed and set her menu as well and placed her hands in her lap. "Well, I guess I've been having trouble sorting my feelings about something—some_one_, I should say."

"And who is this someone?" Dawn asked slyly.

May paused for a moment. "Do you promise not to tell him anything I tell you?"

"Of course, May. I respect your feelings. If you don't want me to tell, then my lips are sealed," Dawn said with a smile.

"Well… I think I might like… A-ash," May managed to say softly.

Dawn gawked at May for a moment in disbelief, her jaw practically touching the table. After seeing the offended look on May's face, she regained her composure and put on a more serious look.

"Wow. I wasn't expecting that," Dawn responded.

"Please, Dawn, help me figure this out! I have no idea what to do, or what to say to him, or whether to talk to him about it at all! I mean what if this is just a little crush or something, and I do decide to tell him, and then later I realize that I don't like him like I thought I did! Or what if I do tell him, and he doesn't like me back, and it screws up our friendship? And if I don't tell him, he might find another girl that he likes, and he'll never know my feelings for him, and I'll regret it for the rest of my life! And what if—"

"May, relax!" Dawn cut in, interrupting May's breakdown. She let May take a few deep breaths before she continued. "If it were me, I would give it some time. Give your feelings a chance to sort themselves out. Maybe Ash—as dense as he is—will feel the same way about you that you feel about him. If you decide to tell him, you might just want to drop little hints, just in case he shows any signs of rejection. If he seems comfortable with it, then come right out with it. Just make sure you're sure about your feelings before you do anything too serious. Like you said, you don't want to do anything to your friendship. Ash is a great guy, and even if he doesn't feel the same way, I'm sure he'll understand."

May took a sip of her lemonade the waitress had brought her before smiling back at her friend. "Thanks, Dawn. It feels great to finally get that off my chest. I never knew you knew so much about this romance stuff."

"Yeah, I had my fair share of boyfriends back in Sinnoh. I practically had them bowing at my feet," Dawn replied. The two girls laughed as their waitress returned, and gave her their lunch orders.

***

Ash slowly made his way down the stairs of his house after hearing his mother screaming at him from the kitchen that breakfast was ready. He entered the kitchen to see Brock at the table and Delia standing at the stove, her back turned to them. Ash took as seat next to Brock, lost in his own thoughts.

"Hey, Brock," Ash said after a few minutes, "can I talk to you after breakfast about something?"

"Sure, Ash," Brock answered. "Is everything okay?"

Ash sighed before answering. "I'm not sure 'okay' would be the right word for it."

Brock looked at Ash with a concerned look, and decided not to question him anymore at that moment, for Delia had brought them two plates of pancakes, toast, eggs, and bacon.

After breakfast, Brock had volunteered to clean the dishes. Ash also decided to help, thinking it was a good time to ask Brock about what had been bothering him. Delia had gone to Professor Oak's lab to visit, so Ash would be able to talk about his "issue" without his mother eavesdropping.

"So, what's wrong Ash?" Brock asked concern evident in his voice.

"Well, I'm sorta having mixed feeling about something," Ash responded.

"Would this 'something' happen to be a 'someone'"? Brock asked with a grin.

Ash looked up from the cup he was currently scrubbing. "How did you know?"

"Let's just say I have my reasons," Brock replied. "And would this 'someone' happen to be May?"

"Have you been stalking me or something?" Ash questioned.

"Oh, come on, Ash. I saw the way you acted around her at the mall yesterday. It wasn't exactly hard to figure it out."

"So what should I do?" Ash asked as he set down the cup in the drying rack.

"What do you mean?" Brock asked, glancing over at Ash.

"I mean should I tell her? And if I do tell her, how should I do it? I've never really felt this way before, Brock, and I'm not quite sure how to handle it."

"Well, I would suggest waiting a while until you're sure about your feelings. You don't want to tell her right away just to later find out that you don't mean it like you think you do," Brock answered.

Ash stared out the window in thought. "But what if I do tell her and she doesn't feel the same way about me? I don't want to lose her as a friend."

Pausing for a moment, Brock thought of how to respond. "Ash, May is a great person. I'm sure she'll understand no matter how you tell her, if you do. I know how much she cares about you, and vice versa. She'd never let something like that ruin a friendship that's as strong as the one between the two of you. And who knows, maybe she likes you, too."

Ash looked up and smiled at his friend. "Thanks, Brock. But what I still don't understand is how you know so much about love and everything, and yet you still can't get a single girl to even acknowledge your existence."

"Well, that's one question I'm still trying to find an answer to," Brock sighed.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter Six**_

"It's about time you guys came back. I was starting to worry that you got lost or something," Misty said from the doorway of her room as May and Dawn approached her.

"Sorry, we did a little browsing in the gift shop after we ate. I found the cutest ribbon to give Eevee when I get back to Hoenn," May said.

"Besides, is it such a big deal that it took us an hour and a half to get back?" Dawn asked Misty.

Misty glanced at her cell phone, and replied, "Well, considering that Brock and Ash are meeting us her in less than ten minutes, then yes, I would say that it is kind of a big deal."

"Crap!" May exclaimed, slapping her forehead with the palm of her hand. "I completely forgot about the movie. I gotta go get ready and make sure Max remembered. See ya."

"O.M.G., my hair probably looks horrible. I'll be back," Dawn said as she ran toward the bathroom.

"Wow," Misty sighed, "and I thought I was bad."

Max looked up in surprise as his sister ran into the bathroom. "What's the rush, May?"

"Ash and Brock are coming in, like, ten minutes to go to the movies, remember? Dawn came so early that I didn't even get a chance to make sure my hair was somewhat decent," May replied, slamming the bathroom door behind her.

"Oh, yeah," Max said with a sigh. He pulled himself off his bed regretfully and got his clothes together and waited for May to finish in the bathroom.

May quickly ran the brush through her hair, but decided that she didn't have enough time to put her bandana into place, so left her hair down. She walked back into the room to see Max sprawled out on his bed.

"Max! Why aren't you dressed yet?" May yelled as she heard a knock on the door, running over to answer it. "I told you that Brock and Ash were gonna be here any minute, so get in the bathroom and get ready, you little—Oh…hi, Ash."

"Uh, hey, May," Ash greeted. "Is everything alright in there?"

May sighed. "Max still isn't dressed or anything yet, and he's been up for hours. Sometimes he's just impossible to live with."

"Well, we've still got about forty minutes before the movie starts, and the theater is just down the road," Ash said as May opened the door further to let him inside.

May sat down on her bed, and Ash leaned against the wall near the door casually, his hands in his pockets. Ash looked at May for a moment, noticing that she seemed to be deep in thought.

"Hey, May, do you mind if I ask you something?" Ash asked her as he walked away from the wall to stand a few feet beside her.

"Uh…sure," May replied.

"Well, I noticed that you were acting a little strange last night. It seemed like something was upsetting you. Is everything alright?"

'_Oh, no,'_ May thought. _'I can't tell him the truth now. He can't find out. I still need time to think this whole thing through. I gotta get out of this.'_

"May?" Ash said. "Are you okay?"

"Huh?"

"May, you can tell me anything. You know that, right?" Ash smiled.

"Yeah, of course I know that, Ash." '_God, how can he be so hot?' _May closed her eyes to get the thought out of her head.

"If you're really not comfortable talking about this, just say so. I don't want to pressure you into saying anything that you don't want to say."

"Maybe that would be best," May said, afraid to look in his eyes.

"I can respect that. But let me know if you ever do want to talk about it. Or anything else, for that matter. You can trust me," Ash promised, sitting down next to her and placing his hand lightly on her shoulder.

"I know. Thanks Ash," May said, finally looking up into his concern-filled eyes.

Ash smiled, and pulled her into a hug. As he wrapped his arms around the small of her back, May lifted her arms up and put them around his neck. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of his chest pressed against hers. She felt the heat rising in her cheeks as he pulled her in slightly closer to him.

"Will the insanity never end?" Max exclaimed as he exited from the bathroom.

Ash quickly let go of May, the blush obvious on his face.

"Get over it, Max." May ran her fingers through her hair as an attempt to hide her red face as she got up from the bed and grabbed her purse.

Max walked up to Ash before whispering, "Ash, do you know what's been wrong with May? She seems really upset."

"I just asked her what was upsetting her, but she didn't want to talk about it," Ash whispered, glancing at her briefly as she rearranged her hair in the mirror near the doorway.

"Oh. I just asked because I really don't want to see her unhappy. I know we never get along around you guys, but at home we actually kinda like each other."

"I know, Max," Ash said. "She'll probably get over it soon. I told her she could talk to me about anything if she needed to, so hopefully she'll be back to her old self in no time."

Max, Ash, and May walked out the door to find Misty, Dawn, and Brock waiting for them near the elevators at the end of the hall.

"What took you guys so long?" Dawn asked impatiently.

"Oh, please, Dawn. You spent at least a good fifteen minutes in the bathroom making sure every single hair was in place. You're always late just because you half to look perfect," Misty commented.

"Well, some people don't settle for anything less than perfect. It takes time to look this good," Dawn said, twisting her hair in her fingers.

"Too bad all that time went to waste," Ash mumbled under his breath, causing May to snicker.

"No one asked you, Ketchum!" Dawn yelled at Ash.

"Come on, Dawn, you set that one up perfectly! You can't not expect me to take advantage of an opportunity to insult you."

"Well I never asked for your opinion!"

"Since when do I need any sort of invitation to voice it?"

Max sighed and rolled his eyes as he pressed the down button of the elevator, the doors opening seconds later. By the time the elevator reached the lobby, and the group had walked onto the sidewalk outside, Ash and Dawn were still yelling back and forth.

"Will you two can it?!" Misty screamed, causing other pedestrians to glance in their direction in surprise. "It seems like the two of you never stop arguing."

"He always starts it," Dawn murmured, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What? I do not!"

"Yes, you do, Ash."

"Do not!"

"Do to!"

"Do—"

"Don't start!" Misty yelled, causing Ash to pause mid-sentence. "Can we please just go to the theater and watch the movie? And without any bickering?"

"Fine," Dawn answered, her back to Ash with her arms still folded across her torso.

"I can handle that," Ash said. "I'm not sure about _her_ though."

Dawn opened her mouth to retort, but May put her hand over Dawn's mouth to prevent yet another argument.

Everyone was crammed into Ash's car, with Ash driving, Brock in the passenger's seat, and Max, May, Misty, and Dawn uncomfortably seated in the back. The plan was that when the movie was over, Brock, Dawn, and Misty would walk back to the hotel and Ash would drive May and Max to the harbor to pick up Norman and Caroline at one o'clock. By the time they got settled in to their hotel room and back to Ash's house, they would have enough time to get ready for Delia and Ryan's wedding at three.

As his friends carried on various conversations around him, Ash had numerous thoughts running through his head. He thought about telling May how he felt, but couldn't come up with a good enough plan to do it.

'_Maybe if I can talk to her alone at the harbor I can say something,'_ Ash though. '_I have no idea what to say, but I at least have to tell her something. Who knew that love could be such a complicated thing?'_


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter Seven**_

The local movie theater was more crowded than the group had expected. The ticket line extended well outside the entrance, and it seemed to be moving at a rather sluggish pace. As everyone exited the car, Brock sighed apathetically.

"Ya know, we may have to go to the next showing of the movie," he said as he checked his watch. "There's no way we're going to catch this showing in fifteen minutes."

"Well, there's another movie playing in about forty minutes. We could probably get into that one on time," Misty pointed out, glancing at one of the posters near the doorway.

"Aw, come on, that's a chick flick! There's no way I'm watching that," Max complained.

"Yeah, I think I'm with Max on that one," Ash agreed. "I really don't think _'27 Dresses'_ is my kind of movie. I think I'll sit this one out."

"Oh, suck it up! Besides, I really wanted to see that one," Dawn said. "What about you, Misty? Are you in?"

"Sure. I like a good romance movie every now and again," Misty replied with a small shrug.

"Me too!" Brock exclaimed.

Ash turned around to look at Brock. "You can't be serious, Brock."

"Are you kidding? Of course I'm serious! There're some hot chicks in this flick," Brock said, staring at the advertising poster.

"Right…Anyways, I'm sure you'd want to see it, May. You comin' too?" Dawn asked the brunette.

May paused for a moment to think. "Actually, I'll have to pass, too. We were cutting it close the first time with my parents' arrival at the harbor. We probably won't have time for that movie."

"But you three could go see it," Ash added. "May, Max, and I could drive down to the harbor while you guys are at the movie, and we could meet back at my house for the wedding."

"But that's like a six mile walk!" Dawn exclaimed in protest.

"Oh no! What was I thinking, Dawn? I am_ so_ sorry! I—OW! What the hell, Misty!"

"Don't you two _dare_ start that again!" she yelled with her hands on her hips.

"Well, why did you have to slap me across the face? And besides, _she_ started it!"

"I do not care, Ash Ketchum!" Misty yelled back. "I am sick of you arguing with her all the time!"

"Oh, like I start it! She just can't keep her bratty little mouth shut," Ash said in a defensive tone.

"Ex_cuse_ me?" Dawn intervened, now with her hands on her hips. "I'm not the stupid, idiotic, immature boy in this situation!"

"So that's what you think, huh?" Ash said, taking a step closer to her. "Well, at least I'm not a stuck up, snotty teenage girl who's only concerned about her over-sized ego!"

"Really?" Dawn questioned, also taking a step forward. "At least I'm not a complete moron!"

Ash opened his mouth, thinking of a clever comeback, but closed it again after coming up with nothing. "Well… uh…I know you are, but what am I?"

"Oh, my God, you are so lame, Ash. Is that the best you can do?"

Ash glared at her for a few seconds before saying, "I don't have to listen to your crap. May, Max, let's go," before turning around back towards his car and opening the driver's side door.

"Uh…see ya later, I guess. Enjoy the movie," May said to Brock, Misty, and Dawn, and quickly ran after Ash before he drove off without her.

"Well, that was awkward," Max shrugged, also walking towards Ash car and getting in the back seat.

May and Max had just barely managed to get in the car and close their doors before Ash angrily shoved the keys in the ignition and started to pull away from the movie theater parking lot. He muttered something indistinguishable as their other three friends faded from view. Only after Ash had taken a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself a few minutes later did May feel safe to talk to him.

"Hey, Ash, isn't a little early to go to the harbor now? The boat doesn't get in until another two hours."

"I know. And, May, I'm sorry about what happened back there. I was just in a hurry to get away from Dawn. Do you wanna go somewhere until we have to pick your mom and dad up?" Ash asked.

"Nowhere in particular. What do you think, Max?" May responded.

"Whatever."

May sighed. "Alright then. How about we go to the beach for a while since it's not far from the harbor?" she suggested.

"Sounds good," Ash agreed.

The car drive to the beach was silent, with May leaning back against the seat starring out the passenger window, Ash concentrating on the road, and Max simply starring off into space.

At the sound of the engine being cut off, May picked her head up off the window and the three of them got out of the car.

"So, now what?" May asked.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find any Pokémon near the grass over there," Max stated, walking in the direction of the grassy area near the other side of the beach.

"And then there were two," Ash smiled at May.

May laughed slightly as the two friends began to stroll towards the water's edge. For a while they were silent, both lost in their own thoughts.

"So…" Ash was the first to break the silence.

"So…what?" May asked, looking up at him.

"So…what do you wanna do?"

"Hmmm…I don't know. What do you wanna do?"

"Do you just wanna talk about stuff?" Ash asked.

"What kind of 'stuff'?"

"Anything, I guess."

"Okay. Are you excited about your mom's wedding?" May asked.

Ash shrugged. "I guess. I mean, I suppose it'll be nice having another man in the house for a change. It's just been my mom and me for quite a while."

"Oh… sorry," was all May said in response.

"Sorry about what?" Ash questioned, looking down at May.

"You know, bringing up the fact that you only have your mom around. It must be hard for you to talk about."

"Not really," Ash said. He sat down on a fallen tree about ten feet from the water, and May sat next to him. "It was so long ago that my dad past away that I've learned to accept the fact that he's gone, and I just have to move past it."

"Well, if you don't mind me asking…" May began hesitantly, "…what happened to your dad?"

Ash paused for a minute, thinking. "I guess it started when I was about two. May parents had been married about six years. My dad was a pretty well-known Pokémon trainer at the time. He decided that with me growing up and our family needing more money that he should try to get a job. He decided to train to be a Pokémon Ranger. After a few months of his training, a huge fire broke out in the Viridian Forest. Even thought he still need a few more weeks of training to become a certified Ranger, they sent my dad in because they needed all the assistance that they could get. They weren't able to control the fire alone, so they called in teams from northern cities as well. My dad was always a little over confident, and even after the chief had insisted that he return home along with all the other uncertified rangers after receiving the extra help, he was determined to stay. Well, his confidence got the better of him, and without the permission of the chief, he went in deeper into the forest. He thought that he would be able to help the Pokémon easily and get out safely, but… he couldn't. A burning tree fell and blocked his only way out of the forest, and he was trapped. The rescue teams couldn't reach him and…" Ash broke off as he felt tears coming to his eyes.

"Oh, Ash, I'm so sorry. Please, if it hurts you that much to talk about it, then please stop. I don't want to see you like this," May whispered. She put her hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

Ash quickly wiped the tears from his eyes. "I'm fine, May. Really." He placed his hand over hers and smiled.

"Okay, Ash," May smiled back. She scooted slightly closer to him and reached her arms up to put them around his neck. He returned the gesture and wrapped his arms securely around her waist.

"Are you sure you're okay?" May asked with concern.

"I'm sure. I promise," he reassured her.

They let go of each other a moment later and sat on the tree, watching the waves roll away from the sandy beach.

May stood up and walked slowly toward the water. She slipped off her shoes and socks and waded in the knee-deep water. She turned around to see that Ash hadn't moved from the log, and yelled,"Are you comin'?"

Ash smiled and took off his hat, shoes and socks as well, and rolled up his jeans past his knees. He jogged over to where May stood bent over in the water. Before he had time to react, May suddenly turned around and threw her arms up, spraying Ash with salty water.

"What was that for?" Ash yelled, wiping the water from his face.

"Come on, Ash, loosen up!" May teased as she ran in the other direction.

"Oh, don't think you can splash me and just get away with it!" he called, chasing after her. When he was close enough, he kicked his foot up, sending water flying in May's direction.

She shrieked when the water hit her back, and froze where she stood in surprise. "Now you did it, Ketchum!" She turned around and splashed him multiple times, and Ash did the same.

Ash suddenly ran towards her and pushed her into the one-and-a-half-foot-deep water. May screamed again in surprise, and instinctively grabbed hold of his shirt for support, sending him tumbling into the water with her. Ash landed beside her, and they both laughed in amusement.

"Great, now my clothes are soaked," May said, still giggling. She took the hand Ash had extended out toward her as he helped pull her out of the water.

"Yeah, mine, too," Ash agreed.

When they were both back on the sand, Ash took his shirt off to wring the water out of it.

'_Oh, my God_,' May thought. '_He's gotta stop torturing me like this.'_

After being somewhat satisfied with the amount of water he got out of his shirt, Ash attempted to slip it on back over his head, but with some difficulty. "Uh, May…I'm kinda stuck."

"Nice goin', Ash," May laughed as she helped him pull the back of his shirt over his head.

"Hey, that wasn't entirely my fault, May," he commented.

"Yeah, but you were the one who started it," May pointed out.

"So that's what you think, huh?" Ash smirked.

"It sure is," she replied smugly.

"Okay then…" Ash said as he bent over, grabbed hold of her legs, and slung her over his shoulder.

"ASH! What the hell are you doing? Put me DOWN!" May screamed, although she was still laughing.

"I'm not letting go of you until you apologize for pulling me into to water," he laughed as he started jogging over toward the docks.

"What are you talking about? I already told you, you pushed me in!" she protested.

"That doesn't mean you had to bring me with you."

"I found it appropriate, considering that _you started it_!"

"If you don't say that you're sorry, I'll have to throw you back into the water," Ash threatened as they reached the end of the dock.

"Ash Ketchum, I swear, if you throw me in the water I'll—"

"You'd better hurry, May…" Ash said, grabbing her waist as if to lift her off his shoulder.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry!" shrieked May.

"There, now was that so hard?" Ash asked with a slight laugh.

"Yeah, whatever. Now can you put me down? All the blood's rushing to my head."

Ash sighed. "Oh, I suppose."

He bent over again and let her slip off his shoulder and onto the dock. May staggered slightly for a moment as she recovered, but managed to shoot a dirty look in Ash's direction despite her dizziness.

"Thank you," she said unpleasantly, her hands on her hips as she glared up at him.

"I'm sorry, May. Did that upset you?" Ash teased.

"Actually, now that I think about it, no. I'm sure this'll make up for it!" May said as she pushed Ash off the dock they were standing on and into the shoulder-deep water below.

As he resurfaced, Ash shook the water from his hair. "Alright, I guess were even now. But you can't deny that _that_ was entirely your fault."

"I beg to differ," May grinned. "If you hadn't had pushed me into the water before, I wouldn't have had any motive to push you in just now. So technically, you're still the one to blame."

"Sure, sure. Now could you please help me out?" Ash asked May politely.

"Yeah, right," she laughed. "You'll just pull me in with you."

Ash sighed. "Fine. If you don't trust me, I guess I'll have to swim back to shore."

"Good luck with that," May smiled, running back down the dock toward the beach.

"Hey! Wait up!" Ash shouted after her as he began swimming back.

May glanced behind her briefly, laughing at Ash. The small distraction caused her to swerve slightly, and fall off the dock and into the water. May shrieked as she hit the cold water below her.

"May!" Ash yelled, immediately swimming toward her.

May had already resurfaced by the time Ash had reached her, bent over at the waist and coughing up mouthfuls of water.

"Oh, my God, May, are you alright?" Ash said hurriedly while supporting her back, as she was quite unstable and disoriented after her fall into the lake.

May coughed up a bit more water and took a few deep breaths before replying. "Y-yeah… I think I am." After somewhat regulating her heartbeat, she said to Ash, "Alright, I've gotta admit… _that_ was definitely my fault."

"Yeah, there's no denying that," Ash laughed. May stood up straight again and laughed along with her friend.

"We should probably head to the harbor now," May suggested. "My parents' boat will be docking in about an hour, and they'd kill me if we were late."

"I guess you're right," Ash replied. "Ya know, we're gonna have some explaining to do as to why we're both soaking wet. Your parents might get the wrong impression at first glance."

**A/N: If anyone is wondering when I'm going to update next, READ MY PROFILE. Just f.y.i.**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter Eight**_

"Hey, Mom!" May exclaimed as she ran forward to greet her parents, who had just disembarked from their ship at Pallet Town Harbor.

Upon hearing her daughter's voice, Caroline let go of Max, who had reached her first, and turned to May. "Oh, May, it's good to see… dear God, what happened to you?" Caroline asked, backing away slightly to prevent May from trying to hug her, covering her with salty, seaweed-scented and, obviously, wet water.

"Well, uh… it's kind of a ling story, Mom… "May began. She looked up to Ash for some kind of support, but the boy had suddenly obtained an unusual interest in the dirt scattering the pavement below him, which her was currently kicking with the heel of his shoe, his head bent low as if to avoid engaging in the conversation taking place. May rolled her eyes when it became obvious to her that she obviously wouldn't be getting any help from her friend.

"Never mind that," Caroline interrupted. "She, we have to get back to your house soon to get ready for your mother's wedding."

"What? Oh, right! Of course…" Ash replied, finally coming to full attention.

The group then began to make their way through the dense crowd of people and to the parking lot. With some effort, they managed to find their way back to Ash's car.

After loading all of the luggage into the car, Norman placed a hand on Ash's shoulder and asked, "Hey, Ash, do you mind if I drive us back to your house? It's not that I don't trust you or anything, but considering that you haven't had your license for very long, and with the car being full…"

"I totally understand, Mr. Maple," Ash replied holding the car keys out in front of him. "It's all yours."

Norman smiled at Ash, taking the keys from his hand. "Oh, and it's good to see you again, Ash," he said with a smile.

"You, too, sir," Ash nodded.

"Please, Ash, call me Norman," the man requested.

"Alright… Norman," Ash corrected himself.

Norman grinned at Ash once again before opening the driver's side door of the car and stepping inside. The others followed suit with Caroline in the passenger's seat and Max crammed in the back between Ash and May.

"So, what have you three been up to for the past two days?" Caroline asked.

"Oh, not too much," May answered. "We've been shopping, hanging out, and Dawn, Misty, and Brock saw a movie while we waited for you guys."

"Not to mention that Ash and May had a little… fun… at the beach…" Max snickered

May shot a death glare at her brother. Ash sunk down in his seat to avoid drawing any attention to himself.

Caroline turned around in her seat, a suspicious look on her face. "Is that why the two of you are soaking wet?"

May nodded

"Oh, man," Max laughed, "you should've seen then goin' at it! They were all over each other! I don't know _what_ would've happened if—OWW!"

"Max, you are _so_ over exaggerating! Mom, I swear, nothing like that happened! Ash and I were just messing around in the water! It was nothing…_sexual _or anything! Right, Ash?" May looked over at Ash for backup, who was practically on the floor in a failing attempt to hide from his friends' parents.

"Uh…right, of course it wasn't," he agreed.

"Ya know, May, I really…_really_ don't want to dig too deep into your personal life," Caroline cut in, slowly turning back around to face the windshield.

May sighed and looked back at Ash, who simply shrugged his shoulders and continued to stare out the window.

Max snickered to himself, before being backhanded violently by his obviously-ticked-off sister.

"Will you two stop fighting?" Caroline nearly yelled. "We're all getting sick of your bickering. Ash is probably tired of it, too, right, Ash?"

"Uh…I-I guess so…" Ash stammered, still not quite comfortable talking to the parents of his best friends after their previous conversation.

"You see?" the woman said. "Now, I just wish that you two could get along for just one weekend. Understand?"

"Yes, Mom," the two siblings said in unison.

After a few minutes passed without any kind of conversation, Norman cleared his throat awkwardly and turned the radio on to relieve the tension in the car.

May suddenly slapped her hand to her forehead. "Oh, crap!" she exclaimed.

"What is it, May?" Caroline asked.

"I left all of my stuff for the wedding back at the hotel. Do you mind if we go back before we go to Ash's house?"

Caroline sighed. "May, I really wish you would plan ahead for these kinds of things. I'm not sure we have time to go all the way back to the hotel and then to the Ketchum's house."

"If you and Norman don't have enough time to go back, I'll take May to get her stuff after you get to my house," Ash finally decided to speak.

"You would do that? Oh, thank you, Ash," Caroline said.

Within the next ten minutes or so—in which time May and Max had managed to avoid starting another argument and/or fistfight—Norman pulled into the driveway of the Ketchum residence. With a slight change in the seating arrangement, Norman, Caroline, and Max exited the car, and Ash and May move to the front, with Ash in the driver's seat and May sitting beside him in the passenger's seat. After a few quick good-byes, Ash pulled back out of his driveway.

Ash glanced over at May, noticing that the young girl had been strangely quiet, the look on her face clearly stating that she was upset as she stared out the window.

"May?" the boy asked. "Is everything alright?"

The brunette sighed heavily before replying. "Ash, I…I'm really sorry about what happened. Tat must've been really embarrassing for you. It was for me, anyways. Ugh…sometimes I just wish my family would leave me alone and for once keep their mouths shut. I'm sorry if they put you in an awkward situation."

Ash chuckled lightly. "It's okay, May. I understand how parents can be. Besides, I'm sure I'll recover eventually," he said with a smile.

May laughed along with her friend before speaking in a more serious tone. "Sometimes they just really tick me off. Especially Max."

"Ya know, May, you can always talk to me," Ash said as the car approached a red light. He removed his right hand from the steering wheel and placed it lightly on top of May's. She smiled up at him, and the two teens gazed into each other's eyes for what seemed to be an eternity.

"Uh…Ash, t-the light's green."

Ash suddenly snapped out of his trance, returning his attention to the road. "Oh! Hehe…uh, th-thanks." The boy felt his face grow red as he placed his hand back on the wheel. '_Why did I feel like that when I touched her hand?' _he wondered to himself. '_Maybe I really do love her.'_

May's cheeks also turned a rosy shad of pink. Her hand felt oddly cold after Ash had let go of it. '_I can't take this anymore,_' she thought. _'I've got to tell Ash soon or I'll…explode, or something. Alright…it's all coming out…tonight.'_


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter Nine**_

"Hmm…that doesn't look good," Ash said, stepping out of his car and looking up at the dark sky above him.

"Yeah, I hope it doesn't start raining," May added.

The two friends made their way up to May's room on the third floor of the hotel. Neither of them spoke, as they were both deep in thought. May quickly gathered her things while Ash waited for her near the door.

"All set?" the boy asked as she walked toward the door.

May nodded and hastily brushed past him Ash followed her, closing the door behind him.

As the young girl walked in front of Ash, he couldn't help but admiring her. He observed her graceful stride, up toward her waist, and to her long brown hair cascading down her back. He smiled slightly and looked away.

"Oh, perfect," May sighed. Rain had started to fall in small droplets to the Earth, just enough to cover the surface in a blanket of moisture.

Ash and May sprinted out from under the canopy covering the entrance of the hotel and to the car waiting in the parking lot.

Immediately after shutting the door of Ash's car, May proceeded to pull her mirror out of her purse, trying to re-arrange her hair to the form which it had been previous to her running nearly one hundred feet through the rain.

"You're spending _way_ too much time with Dawn," Ash laughed, shaking his head.

May shrugged her shoulders. "Great minds think alike, I suppose."

Ash sighed. "I'll never understand the female mind."

"You men are all the same," the brunette said.

"Oh?" Ash questioned. "Please elaborate."

"You all think that girls are so complicated and complex, when the truth is that males are too dim-witted to recognize common sense.

Ash looked over at May, eyebrows raised. "So, you're calling me stupid?"

"No! I'm just saying that other guys lack common sense when it comes to the simplest of subjects." She then glanced up at Ash and said, "Believe me, I've met guys who are _a lot_ worse than you."

"That's good to hear… I think."

May grinned at her friend's comment. "Yep, your mother raised you well."

Ash opened his mouth to respond, but couldn't determine whether the statement was meant as a compliment or if some other meaning was implied. He simply remained silent for the remainder of the drive to his house.

***

"Sorry for the inconvenience, Samuel… Okay, see you tonight… Goodbye," Ash heard his mother say from the kitchen as he and May entered through the front door.

"Hey, Mom, what's up?" the raven-haired boy asked.

Delia sighed as she approached the two teens. "I just got off the phone with Professor Oak. It looks like we'll have to delay the wedding for a few hours because of all this rain."

"That's too bad," May said.

"Oh, Ash, Caitlyn went to the lab a few hours ago and walked Pikachu back home for you," the woman said.

"Pi?" At the sound of its name, Pikachu lifted its head over the back of the couch, from where it had been watching TV. "Pika!"

"Hey, buddy!" Ash exclaimed. The electric mouse leaped onto its trainer's shoulder.

"It's good to see you again, Pikachu!" May said with a smile. She laughed as Pikachu rubbed its nose against her cheek.

"Where is everyone?" Ash asked.

Delia walked toward the coat closet in the living room while responding. "Brock, Dawn, and Misty are at Professor Oak's lab, and decided to stay there until the rain lets up."

"Probably Dawn's idea. Her and her hair…" the boy muttered. May smiled and shoved him playfully.

"May, your family just left for your hotel not even five minutes ago. They took my car, so, Ash, I was wondering if Ryan and I could use your car."

"What? Why? Where are you going?" Ash asked.

"Ready to go, Hon?" Ryan's voice could be heard as he descended the stairs.

"Just about," Delia called to him. "We're going to drive around town to try to find a last-minute place for the wedding. The backyard obviously isn't going to work anymore. If all else fails, we'll have both the wedding and the reception at the lab."

"Wait…what about Caitlyn?" Ash questioned, hoping that his mother wasn't thinking what he was thinking.

"Well, you see, dear, I was hoping that you, and possibly May, too, could stay here and watch her for a few hours until we get back…"

Ash glared at his mother. "You hate me, don't you?"

"Oh, Ash, you really need to get acquainted with her. You two will be living with each other by tomorrow," Delia said with a sigh.

"See ya later, Dad!" Caitlyn said as she ran down the stairs and into the kitchen with Ryan.

"Speak of the devil…"

May sighed. "Come on, Ash. She seems harmless. I'd gladly take her over Max."

"Yeah, well, you can have her. I'll even pay you," the young boy said.

"Alright, we're leaving," Delia announced. "You guys be_have_," she whispered to her son.

Ash rolled his eyes as he heard the front door close behind him. He looked over at May, who simply shrugged her shoulders.

"So…Caitlyn…what do you want to do?" Ash asked with absolutely no enthusiasm.

"Hmmm…I really don't care," she answered. She threw herself on the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

"Do you want to…play cards, or…play a board game, or…something?" May suggested.

"I like Uno," Caitlyn responded.

"You've got to be kidding me," Ash said, remembering his embarrassing defeat by Dawn.

May looked over at him. "Please, Ash, how bad could it be?"

***

"Can I forfeit?"

"Ash, quit sucking the fun out of everything."

"_I'm_ not sucking the fun out of everything, Caitlyn, _you_ and _May _are hogging it all yourselves."

"We are not!"

"Yes, you are!"

"Oh, Ash, lighten up!"

"No, May, I will not '_lighten up'_! Caitlyn has won the past nine games! She's just like Dawn! It's freakin' me out!" With that, Ash threw his cards on the table and marched into the kitchen.

May giggled as she watched him walk away. She turned her head toward Caitlyn after noticing that the younger girl was staring at her, a smirk on her face.

"You like him, don't you?" Caitlyn asked.

"Well, of course I 'like' him, he's my best friend," May answered with a nervous laugh.

Caitlyn sighed and narrowed her eyes. "You know what I mean, May."

May fell back on the couch and looked up toward the ceiling. "Yeah," she sighed. "I guess I do."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"So…when are you going to tell him?" Caitlyn asked with excitement.

"Tell him what?" May questioned, trying to avoid the subject.

"That you're totally in love with him!"

May then heard footsteps coming from the kitchen. "Shhh!" she whispered. "He'll hear you!"

"Well, you'll have to tell him eventually."

As Ash entered the living room, he suddenly stopped and shook his head. "Wow, Caitlyn. I leave the room for less than five minutes and you're already turning May over to the dark side. What am I going to do with you?"

"I think I know what we can do…" May replied slyly. "Tickle torture!"

"AAGGHH!" the young girl screamed. "May, come on…HAHA! …Get off me…HAHA!..._PLEASE_!"

Ash cocked his eyebrows slightly as he walked across the living room and sat in the chair opposite of them. He turned on the TV, flipping through the numerous channels.

May finally decided to give Caitlyn a break as she heard the low blare of the television in the background. "Please don't tell him. I will when I'm ready."

"…Fine." Caitlyn said, crossing her arms over her stomach.

The brunette smiled, got off the couch, and sat in the chair next to Ash's. She looked at his face for a few moments as thoughts of him filled her mind. Fortunately for her, the boy was facing the TV screen, so her actions went unnoticed.

All three looked up as they heard the front door open and saw Delia and Ryan enter the house.

"Well, it looks much nicer outside than it did earlier," the woman announced. "You all should get ready soon. The wedding should start in about two hours."

"Thanks, Ms. Ketchum." May said. She, Ash, and Caitlyn made their way upstairs to gather their things.

May followed Ash into his room, where her bag was located. She looked at him nervously as he dug around in his closet, arguing with herself. She finally gathered enough courage to approach her friend.

"Hey, uh…Ash?" she asked.

The young man turned around to face her. "Yeah, May?"

As she gazed into Ash's eyes, May suddenly froze in place, mesmerized by his stare. She tried to tell him what she had been debating about for the past week, but was unable to find the correct words to tell him.

"I…uh…never mind. I…forgot," she said rather lamely.

"Oh. Y-you sure?" Ash asked as he tried to hide his disappointment.

May quickly nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm sure."

"Alright, well… let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"Y-yeah, yeah, I will, Ash. Thanks."

Ash simply smiled as he watched her head for the bathroom door. However, his smile quickly faded once she was out of sight.

'_What was she about to tell me_?' Ash wondered to himself. '_Maybe she was going to tell me that…no. Don't get your hopes up too high, Ketchum. Sure, maybe she was about to tell me that she likes me in the same way that I like her, and she just freaked out a little. But, then again, maybe she really _did _just forget. Oh, I don't know! Why does love have to be so complicated?_'

May practically ran out of Ash's room, slamming the bathroom door behind her. '_Damn it!_' she thought. '_Why did I freeze up like that? I could've told him right then and there! But no, I blew it._' She sighed and looked at her reflection in the mirror. '_But on second thought…maybe what Mom told me is true. Maybe if we really do love each other, things will just fall into place when they are meant to fall. Oh, crap…hopefully I didn't jinx myself by saying the "L" word… oh, well.'_

* * *

May slid her hands down the front of her white dress, trying to smooth out any wrinkles that may have appeared as she put it on. Finally feeling satisfied with her appearance, she unlocked the bathroom door and walked down the hallway. The ceremony was scheduled to begin in roughly twenty minutes, and May wanted to get a decent seat before they were all taken. She stopped, however, when she walked by Ash's open bedroom door, to see him in front of the mirror hanging on his wall, struggling to put on his tie. May giggled as she entered his room.

"Is someone having some issues?" she asked with a laugh.

"Hey, it's not like I'm the only guy out there who can't put on a tie. It's harder than it looks."

"Really?" the young woman questioned. She grabbed his shoulders and spun him around so that he was facing her. Within less than a minute, she released him, with his tie correctly in place around his neck.

"What the—how did you do that?" Ash asked in amazement.

May laughed again. "I had to help Max with that countless times when we were younger. We went to dinner at least once a week with my Dad and his employer, and every time we went to some fancy, expensive restaurant that required the correct apparel. It became a habit after a while."

"Well…aren't you special?" Ash smirked.

The girl smiled and said in a more serious tone, "I still think you look nice, though."

"Yeah, you look great, too," the boy said, absent-mindedly placing his left hand on the side of her arm. The two teens stared at each other for a while, each with smiles on their faces. Ash moved his other hand to May's cheek, and she, it turn, placed her left hand over his hand that was on her arm. Ash stroked the side of the girl's face with his thumb as he moved is face down toward hers. She lifted her head up slightly, knowing what he was about to do. Their eyes closed once they were mere inches apart.

May felt the excitement build in her stomach as he moved one hand to her waist. But, of course, all good things must come to an end, especially with an ignorant, twelve-year-old boy present to mess it all up.

"Ash! May! Are you guys ready yet? Everyone's waiting for us at the lab. Where are you two?" Max called through the house. He then knocked on the door of Ash's bedroom, causing Ash and May to break apart just before he entered the room without permission.

"There you are!" the glasses-clad boy exclaimed. He then raised his eyebrows suspiciously, seeing the two friends about six feet away from each other, their arms crossed over their stomachs and odd expressions on their faces. "Right, well…like I said, you'd better get down there before the ceremony starts," Max said before exiting the room.

With blushes on their faces, the two teens exchanged nervous glances before quickly exiting the room. Neither of them knew exactly what had just happened. They both simply decided to forget about it at that moment in time and focus primarily on Ryan and Delia's wedding.

'_Oh, man, what was I thinking?'_ Ash questioned himself. '_Why did I try to kiss her? I don't even know if she likes me like that! I'll just…pretend that it never happened…yeah, that'll work_.'

'_What…just happened?'_ May wondered. '_Ash just tried to kiss me…didn't he? It sure seemed like he was about to…but, then again, maybe I'm just over-reacting. Maybe my mind just wants me to think that. Yeah, I'm sure that's what happened. My mind is just playing games with me. No big deal…_'


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter Eleven**_

Ash quickly made his way to the Professor Oak's lab. Delia had declared that he was to be one of the ushers for her wedding, so he needed to be in the hall before too many of the guests arrived. It also gave him a reasonable excuse to make a speedy getaway from May, allowing little time for tension and awkward silences between the two friends.

May, on the other hand, ran through the Ketchum household, searching frantically for Dawn and Misty. She finally spotted them in the living room, seconds from opening the front door. May sprinted down the stairs, and leaped in front of the door before her friends could open it.

"Uh…hey, May," Misty said, surprised to see May suddenly appear in her path. "What's up?"

May grabbed Dawn and Misty's arms and pulled them toward the couches located in the living room surrounding the television. "I need to talk to you guys—NOW!"

After practically being thrown into the loveseat, Dawn said, "May, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

May fell back on the other end of the loveseat, grabbed a pillow, shoved it in her face, and screamed at the top of her lungs. She then threw the pillow at Dawn and sighed heavily.

"I take it that's a 'yes'", Dawn muttered.

"What happened, May? Are you okay?" Misty asked.

"No, everything is _not_ okay! Everything is the opposite of okay! I'm not even sure why!"

Misty glanced at May with a skeptical expression. "Well, if _you_ don't even know what's wrong with you, I'm not sure that we'll be of much help."

"It's just that…I'm so confused! I don't know if my mind is playing tricks on me or if I'm unintentionally driving myself insane! And I don't know—"

"Calm down, May!" Dawn interrupted the girl once she started hyperventilating. "Just tell us what's on your mind."

May took a deep breath and briefly collected her thoughts. "You see…I've been thinking that Ash has been dropping hints during the past few days of him liking me, but then I wasn't sure and I started doubting myself, and then, like, five minutes ago I could've sworn that he was about to kiss me, but then Max showed up and Ash just pushed me away and pretended like it never happened, and now I have no idea what to think or what to do or what to say to him, and I'm a freakin' mess!"

Misty stared at May with wide eyes. "Whoa…you and Ash?"

Dawn shot her a look that said, "well, duh, you moron!"

May was now on the verge of tears. "Please, help me, guys. I…I need to know how he feels. I need to know if he actually wanted to kiss me. I need to know…if he loves me."

"Oh, May, it'll be alright," Dawn said. She pulled May into a comforting hug. "We'll figure something out tonight, and I swear that he'll totally fall for you. I'm sure that somewhere deep inside that thick skull of his that he's just waiting for the perfect moment to get his feelings out in the open."

Misty stood up and seated herself on the other side of May, gently patting her shoulder. "Yeah, we'll weasel it out of him for you," she said with a wink.

Dawn pulled May back away from her and smiled. "Misty's right. And now you need to stop crying before you ruin your makeup."

May laughed and wiped her face with her hand. "That's a good point. I guess I wouldn't want Ash to see me with black goo running down my face if he's trying to tell me something serious."

"That's the spirit!" Misty said with a laugh.

***

"So, Ash, how's it goin with May?" Brock asked. The two young men were standing at the entrance of the hall where the wedding was being held. They were both ushers and were waiting for more guests to arrive to seat them.

"Not as good as I had hoped," Ash sighed. "I tried to kiss her and it went totally wrong."

"You tried to _kiss_ her?" Brock nearly yelled, earning a punch in the arm from Ash. Brock then continued at a lower volume, "Why would you do that? You haven't even told her that you like her yet…have you?"

"No, I haven't. But it just seemed like just the right time; it just kinda happened."

"Do you plan on telling her tonight?" Brock asked.

"If all goes well, then yes," Ash answered.

"Well, here she comes. I'll let you take this one." Brock winked at Ash and stepped forward to greet Dawn and Misty to allow Ash to escort May to her seat.

The young girl walked toward the entrance of the hall and stopped in front of Ash.

"Hey," the boy said casually, unaware of May's previous breakdown.

May simply smiled briefly and looked away.

Ash furrowed his brow in response to his friend's reaction. "May I escort you to your seat?" he asked. He held out his arm.

May smiled again and nodded as she linked her arm with his, afraid to make eye contact.

"Listen, May, about what happened back at the house—"

"Can we not talk about that here, Ash?" May asked somewhat impatiently.

"Oh, uh…I guess if you don't want to then we don't have to," Ash answered. They remained silent until they approached the first row of pews on the left side of the hall. "I just want you to know that I want to talk about it eventually. Promise me that we can talk."

May nodded again.

"Thank you. This is where you'll be sitting." Ash gestured toward the front row.

"But isn't that area reserved for family?" May questioned.

"You will be sitting here by request of Ms. Delia Ketchum," the boy answered before walking away.

May sat down toward the middle of the bench and nervously twiddled her fingers. _'Why was he being so formal with me? Maybe I should've been more sociable and relaxed. What if I really hurt his feelings? I could never live with myself if I knew that that one incident led him to believe that I don't like him romantically. I guess all there's left to do now is wait…'_

***

"Seriously, May, you need to relax," Dawn said from a row behind her friend.

May let out a shaky sigh and turned around to face Dawn. "I can't Dawn! I'm just so sick of all this—wondering if Ash actually likes me, worrying if I said something to make him hate me, this never-ending sense of…I don't even know what to call it. I _need_ to tell him."

"Remember, May, Misty and I are here to help. If you ever need anything, we'll be there for you. And personally, I think that it would be good for your mental stability that you tell him. This whole ordeal has gotten you all screwed up in the head. Believe me when I say that we'll all be happy once this is over."

May narrowed her eyebrows slightly at the girl. "Wow, thanks, Dawn. You sure know how to cheer a girl up—tell her that she's screwed up. Yeah, that'll help." She rolled her eyes and turned around.

"I'm sorry, May, but we're all sick of you being all…conflicted, and whatnot. Please, May, just tell him soon so that you can be your happy self again."

The brunette smiled at her friend from over her shoulder and nodded her head. "I appreciate your help. Even if you do think that I'm 'all screwed up in the head'."

Dawn laughed before looking behind her. "Okay, Ash is coming. RELAX. Stay cool. Don't freak out. Maintain your sanity."

May quickly glanced over her shoulder to see that Ash was walking down the aisle rather quickly, looking at his watch. He sat down in the front row next to May, leaving approximately enough room for one or two people to sit between them. "The ceremony's about to start," he said to no one in particular.

A blonde woman, followed by two young children and carrying an infant in her arms, came running down the aisle. "Hello, Ash!" The woman said cheerfully as she seated herself next to the boy.

"Hi, Aunt Susan," Ash replied.

"Hiya, Ash!" one of the young children replied. She and her brother sat on Ash's right, forcing Ash to move closer to May. The bench was now practically full of Delia's relatives.

"Hey, Kayla! How are you?" Ash said with a smile.

"I'm totally awesome! Are you a Pokemon master yet?"

Ash laughed. "Not quite, but I hope to be in a few years. When are you getting your first Pokemon?"

Kayla suddenly looked disappointed. "Not for another five years…"

"Hey, it's alright. I waited a long time too when I got Pikachu. And when you're old enough, I'll even give you some pointers, and then _you'll_ become a Pokemon master!"

The five year old's face lit up. "Really?"

"Of course!" Ash replied with a smile.

Kayla threw her arms around Ash's torso. "Thank you so much! This is gonna be awesome!"

Ash laughed again and patted her back. "Anything for my favorite cousin!"

May smiled as she watched this scene unfold. '_He really has a way with kids_,' she thought. She then felt herself blush as she thought about something else.

Minutes later, music began to echo throughout the hall as Caitlyn marched down the aisle, throwing white and pink flowers from her basket on to the floor. When she reached the first row, she squeezed in between May and Ash.

After everyone was escorted down the aisle, the bridal march began to play, and Delia appeared at the entrance of the hall. She waltzed gracefully down the aisle, her white, strapless wedding dress flowing behind her. She reached the altar where her fiancé stood as the music gradually faded.

Everyone in the hall turned their attention to the minister as he spoke. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here today…" He continued to speak for close to an hour. A few people (Ash included) had to hide their yawns multiple times. This seemed endless…

"And with that, I now pronounce you husband and wife," the minister exclaimed. He turned to Ryan. "You may now kiss your bride."

The newly-wed couple smiled at each other as they kissed. Everyone stood and watched Ryan and Delia walk, hand-in-hand, out the doors of the hall. They were then dismissed into the hallway beyond the doors.

The bride, groom, bridesmaids, etc. gathered in the hallway in a line, shaking hands with the guests, thanking them for coming, and whatnot.

"Hey, Mom, congratulations," Ash said when he reached his mother.

"Oh, thank you, honey," Delia said as her son hugged her.

"Congratulations, Ms. Ket- I mean, Mrs…uh…

"Please, dear, call me Delia," the woman said. May nodded and moved on to shake hands with and congratulate Ryan.

"Excuse me!" Delia called over the chatter a few minutes later. "The reception will begin in fifteen minutes in the backyard. Everyone is welcome."

Misty, May, Dawn, and Ash were gathered in a corner, talking casually. Brock had gone off the flirt the one of the bridesmaids and Max and Caitlyn were standing at the other end of the room.

"I've gotta go help set up," Ash said as he walked away.

The three girls continued talking amongst themselves. Out of the corner of her eye, Misty spotted May's brother near the opposite wall. "Well, it looks like Max and Caitlyn are really hitting it off."

"Yeah," Dawn agreed. "And then there's Brock."

The trio looked over at the man just in time to see him get backhanded by one of the bridesmaids, and kicked in the gut by another.

"Will he ever learn?" May questioned.


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter Twelve**_

When the three friends stepped out into the backyard, the DJ had already started playing music while the bride and groom finished thanking everyone back in Professor Oak's house. May, Misty, and Dawn sat at a circular table near the "dance floor", which was really just the large tiled section near the pool.

"Hey, that guy over there is kinda cute…" Dawn said.

"Dawn, he's, like, twice your age! I think you've been spending a little too much time with Brock." Misty laughed.

Dawn lazily waved her hand in the air. "Pfft, who cares? Besides, you can't look at that face and honestly tell me that he's not totally hot."

May and Misty laughed at their friend and her new obsession.

The song that had been playing suddenly ended and the DJ started up a new song.

"Oh, my God, guys! Single Ladies! Come on, this song is awesome!" Misty exclaimed as she immediately jumped from her seat and practically ran to the dance floor.

Noticing that May had not yet moved, Dawn turned around and asked, "Are you comin', May?"

May smiled slightly and shook her head. "Nah, I think I'll sit this one out. You guys go have fun."

Dawn huffed somewhat impatiently, turning back around, but in the opposite direction of the crowd of people dancing. '_I guess that now would be a good time to give May that gentle nudge from Ash that I promised her_,' Dawn thought. She spotted the boy munching on various snack-type foods over by the buffet bar and approached him from behind.

"Hey, Ash!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Hmm?" Ash turned around to reveal that he had more than a mouth-full of food stuffed into his mouth. He tried to swallow quickly. "Oh, hi, Dawn."

"Listen, Ash, I really think that you need to talk to May. She hasn't been acting like herself lately, and Misty and I were thinking that maybe you could make her feel better since we obviously can't," the girl said.

Ash rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you're tellin' me. She's been acting really strange today, especially around me for some reason. Is this what you girls call 'PMS-ing'?"

"Wha—no! Ash, I just…think that you really need to talk to her. Please?"

The raven-haired boy paused for a brief moment. "Alright, I'll go talk to her." He took a few steps, only to turn back around, grab a handful of pretzels, and head back toward the table where May sat.

May continued to sit at the table, her chin in her palm. She wasn't sure how, but she knew that she had to tell Ash about her feelings for him _tonight_. How in the world was supposed to tell her best friend that she was practically in love with him? It's not like she could just casually bring it up in a conversation. She was pulled out of her thoughts when she sensed someone standing beside her. May looked up to see the source of her dilemma himself, Ash Ketchum.

"Hey," he said, smiling sheepishly.

"Hey," May responded, lifting her head from her hand.

"Uh…is now a good time to talk?" Ash asked the girl.

She nodded. He pulled up a chair to face her, sitting less than a foot away for her. They were both too nervous to speak first. To try to relieve the tension, Ash reached out his hand toward May. "Pretzel?" he asked.

May laughed softly. "Sure," she said. She took a pretzel from his hand and munched on it slowly.

"May…" Ash said after a moment of silence. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and folding his hands together. "I'm really sorry about…what happened before the wedding. You know, if I made you feel uncomfortable or anything… I'm sorry about that, and anything else that I may have done these past few days to upset you."

The brunette sighed. "Ash, that's not what I'm upset about."

"Well then what—"

May held up her hand to silence him. "Let me finish," she demanded. "I'm upset because you just pushed me away after Max came in like you didn't care…like you didn't mean it…"

Ash softened his eyes at the sadness in his friend's voice. "Did you want me to mean it?"

May felt the tears forming in her eyes. "Yes," was all she was able to get out.

"Oh, May…" Ash felt that he needed to comfort the girl before him. He took one of her hand in one of his own and used his other hand to gently touch the side of her face and wipe away some of her tears.

"The past two days I've…been in denial and confusion…trying to sort out…my feeling toward you…and I've been so afraid…of rejection…that I couldn't bring myself…to tell you…and I've been a total…mess since I got here…and I've been such… a horrible friend to you…I'm so sorry…" May said in between sobs.

"May, there's nothing to be sorry about," Ash reassured her. "I understand why you've been so distant lately. And to be honest, I'm glad you feel that way, because…I feel the same way about you."

May lifted her eyes to meet his, a hint of joy hidden within them. "Seriously?"

Ash smiled and nodded. "Seriously."

"Oh, my God, Ash, you have no idea how much better that makes me feel!" May exclaimed as she placed a hand on her chest.

"So…are we cool?"

May smiled the smile that Ash had missed so much. "Yeah, we're cool."

Ash stood up and opened his arms. May also stood from her chair and threw arms around his neck. They stayed in the embrace for quite a while, neither of them wanting to let go of the other.

A new song suddenly started playing over the speakers. Ash recognized it as 'Love is a Beautiful Thing' by Phil Vassar. "Hey, you wanna dance?" he whispered into May's ear.

"I'd love to," she said as they finally released each other.

The boy took her hand and led her out onto the dance floor, where he placed his hands on her waist and she returned her hands to their previous position around his neck.

"Ya know, Ash," May started, "I'm so glad that all this tension is gone between us. It feels so great to actually be comfortable around you again without worrying about how you feel about me…because now I know."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Ash agreed. "No more worry about what to say and what not to say, or being to up-front about it. It's good to have things back to normal."

May nodded. "And speaking of what and what not to say, there's still something that you haven't told me yet."

The boy cocked his head slightly, unsure of what May meant. Then realization set in. "Oh…you mean…"

"Yep," the brunette said, smiling slyly.

"Well, in that case," Ash began, "I think that there's something that we should do first."

May tried—and failed quite miserably—to hide her smile. "And what would that be?"

Ash smiled at the girl, gently brushing a strand of hair from her face before placing it on her cheek, his other hand on her arm.

"Wow, this is eerily familiar," May laughed. Her lips were practically grazing his.

Ash chuckled. "It is, isn't it?"

At long last, their lips connected. May mentally rolled her eyes—his lips tasted like pretzels. Ash had moved both of his hands to her waist to pull her body in closer to him. May stood on her toes, making her almost as tall as him, and allowing the kiss to deepen. After a minute or two, they pulled away, smiles plastered on both of their faces.

"I love you so much, May Maple."

"I love you, too, Ash Ketchum."

As quickly as the song had started, it ended. Another song then started blaring over the speakers, one known as 'Hey Baby'. May gasped suddenly as she heard the first few bars of the song. "Hey, I _love_ this song!" she exclaimed. She grabbed Ash's wrist as they joined their group of friends in the center of the dance floor. The newly formed couple happily danced together to the up-beat song, laughing and singing along with the lyrics.

May turned around when she felt a hand on her back. She greeted Dawn with her usually warm smile.

"You're finally back!" Dawn exclaimed, pulling her friend into a friendly hug.

May laughed again. "Yep, I'm back to normal and I've never been happier!" she nearly screamed over the music.

"Neither have I!" Dawn said. A familiar face suddenly appeared behind Dawn and he snaked his arms around her waist.

"Gary?" Ash and May both yelled in disbelief.

"Ya got a problem with that, Ashy boy?" Gary said with a wink.

Ash simply smiled and pulled his newly-acquired girlfriend back toward him, spinning her around once before dancing with her once again.

Was it love at first sight? Technically, no. Was their love destined to be? No, not necessarily. But one thing was for certain—Love is a Beautiful Thing.

* * *

**So, what did you guys think? I hope the ending wasn't too awkward. I'm actually pretty satisfied with this story, considering it's my first. Well, almost seven months, 29 pages, twelve chapters, and nearly 18,000 words later, it's FINALLY done. I would like to thank all of you who reviewed and gave me constructive critizism and whatnot. I still get this fuzzy feeling inside knowing that people actually like my story! I would also like to thank all of you for baring with me for late updates, and then updating at random times (so much for updating every Friday). For example, I posted chapter ten in June, chapter eleven on Tuesday, and then chapter twelve three days later! Oh well...at least my final update was actually on a Friday.**

**I'm not sure if anyone ever noticed this, because I didn't even notice it until I was halfway done with the last chapter, but I never brought Max and May's parents into the story; I only mentioned them a couple of times. Oops! I might re-upload one of the later chapters to include them, but if it's not a big deal with all of you out there, then I probably won't bother with it.**

**I once posted on my profile that I had a sequel to this story somewhat planned out (but seriously, who reads other people's profiles?) but I honestly don't think that that's going to happen anymore. I may happen...maybe next year, after I get my other stories posted. That's right, I already have three other stories planned out, and one is already halfway done! I'm not saying anything about them though...just make sure to check back often. **

**A little note about the songs mentioned in this story. The song that inspired the basic idea of this story (if it's not completely obvious by now) is Love is a Beautiful Thing, by Phil Vassar. Another song, although not mentioned in the story, was You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This by Tobey Keith, which inspired the dance scene. Of course, after spending much time in my crazed head, the ideas were altered quite significantly, so you probably wouldn't be able to tell by reading the story. Hey Baby is a song that we sing in band after parades, so I HAD to include a band song. Single Ladies is just a fun dancing song that I decided to add for the heck of it. Plus, my band director is TOTALLY obsessed with Beyonce, which kinda-sorta makes it a band song as well =)**

**Again, thank you all SO MUCH for all of your support! Luv ya all!  
~Snow 94~**


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